164 Cross Country with Horse and Hound 



cans send abroad for hounds they are invariably selected 

 from the fashionable racing packs of the great grass coun- 

 tries. These hounds have symmetry and beauty and the 

 speed of greyhounds, and for their own particular country 

 are the best in the world. An American hound might well 

 think himself nothing but a cur in such company, and 

 would be left hopelessly behind in the second or third 

 field. The trouble is that in the beautiful grass countries, 

 with their prevailing moist climate, the scent of a fox lies 

 so well that a hound with half a nose can follow it at full 

 speed. Brought to the States and asked to follow a line 

 over sun-parched fields and fallow land, he is more often at 

 fault than an American hound ; yet the fault is not with the 

 English hound, but with the locality from whence he came. 

 There are many packs in England where far more suitable 

 selections of hounds for America could be made than those 

 which come from the grass countries. I mean such packs 

 as hunt the more barren and hilly lands, in which conditions 

 as to scent are similar to those of the States. 



Whatever is done, Americans should not be content 

 longer with " Handsome is that handsome does." Let 

 them preserve untarnished the sport of the game, and not 

 lower the hunting part of it to the level of a rat-trap. 

 If it is merely a question of getting across a lake, take a 

 ferry. If it is a question of sport, take a sail-boat. You 

 may need more time, but you have the satisfaction of doing 

 the thing in a sportsmanlike way. 



